In Variance
by Avid.Spade
Summary: He was about to start moving when her voice stopped him once more. "Take me back!" He shot her a cynical glance and spoke, "whether you like it or not woman, you're stuck here with me." What had she gotten herself into? Anzu/Yami Bakura. Enjoy.
1. Realization

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Yu-gi-oh or any of the characters associated with it.

Enjoy.

* * *

She had heard he was back in town.

It was raining hard that night.

The message had not been relayed directly to her, but the protracted grape vine of information managed to run seamlessly through her companions and sometimes even the folks of Domino City. Anzu was not too bothered by the situation- him being in the city was a far cry from worrying to her. And unlike her friends who had taken a certain measure of precautions to fill in the 'what if's' and other petty excuses they had of being robbed or murdered, Anzu had not.

She refused to let the presence of a certain white headed male dictate how she spent her life in the city.

Anzu was a free bird. She liked a sense of freedom and liberty in her life; in fact, she often found that she liked dictating the situation her way only. And perhaps it was that asinine reasoning and that zealous attitude of hers that had landed her in the current and rather unanticipated situation. And maybe, if she had not decided to take cover on a boat that very stormy, rainy night- the same night a certain white haired man was roaming the streets- she would find herself drinking a warm cup of tea on her living room couch.

_Maybe. _

Just maybe.

oOo

Anzu let out a muffled groan as she squinted her eyes at the strong rays of sunlight falling from the tiny metal bars of a window located on the wall. Letting out a large yawn, she tried to push herself up, but failed with no avail. Muttering curses under her breath, she further opened her eyes, trying to get a clear grasp on her surroundings. "What on earth-?" Her eyes shot open when she noted her lack of recognition of the surrounding. She gave a painful gasp, and clutched her back in discomfort. What had she been sleeping on?

Slowly and carefully, Anzu brought herself to her feet, making sure not to pull any part of her muscles that would cause more strain to her sore body. She took an inventory of the small room she was in: for one, it was all metal from ceiling to floor. That certainly explained her rather uncomfortable sleeping experience and painful aftermath. Aside from a small window, the room offered a rather dull sight that consisted primarily of dusty old crates and ragged looking cloths that did little to cover anything except some dust here and there.

"Where am I?" Anzu was not expecting a response; her question hung in the air like dead weight. A quashed silence fell over her again.

It didn't last for long.

Panic spread through her body like waves of fire when she heard a small creak and the slight shuffle of feet behind the shadows of the crates. Spinning around in the direction of the source, she steadied herself and backed away, as slowly as possible.

High on alert, her voice came out stronger that she expected. "Come out, I can hear you."

Seconds passed by before her, and Anzu was begin to feel stupid for talking to the nobody in that room- she was glad she was alone, or she imagined that would have been very embarrassing otherwise. Perhaps she had been seeing things. Sighing in relief, she rubbed her forehead and released her rigid stance. _There's nothing there, _she reassured herself, stretching a bit more.

Another crack - louder this time - had her eyes widening once more.

She didn't speak this time. In a painstakingly slow movement she turned around once more, however this time she gasped in shock and her eyes widened even further when she drew her attention to the face. Mouth gaping wide, she pointed an accusing finger at him, "what're you doing here?"

Bakura's eyes glared at her with a strange mix of amusement and annoyance. "I should be the one asking that." His voice came out cold, harsh and low, and Anzu almost shuddered at the sound of hearing it again after so long.

"How long have you been there?"

He was quick to reply, "long enough."

He stepped out of the shadows and leaned casually on the wall, taking in the appearance of the shaking woman before him. He smirked when he noted her lack of proper attire. Shorts, a tank and a large coat over it? Well, if anything the coat indicated that she had been prepared for the rain, and her short clothing suggested that she had originally been dressed for something along the lines of 'boiling hot'.

"Not dressed for a ship I see," he glowered.

Anzu's eyes flew to meet his in frenzy as she fought to articulate her words under his intimidating presence. "Ship? What do you mean 'ship?" She squinted her eyes making sure this was all real and not make believe.

He crossed his arms over his chest, "if you haven't noticed, we're on a ship woman," he indicated, directing his head to the metal bars of the window above her. Anzu closed her eyes and absorbed the sounds around her; seagulls, the sound of slamming waves and that peculiar, yet oddly amiable smell of the ocean was not lost on her. Her eyes shot open at the sound of his feet moving once again.

"Why am I here?" She said, shifting far away from him as possible. It occurred to Bakura that she was under the deluded impression that he had _personally_ brought her here for reasons even he could not come up with. He inwardly scoffed at the idea of finding her even the slightest bit useful. _She's full of it.__  
_

He raised a brow at her question. "I'll have you know that you came here yourself," he snapped, "I don't know how the fuck you got here."

She cringed at his foul language and fought back the urge to point it out, knowing that she had more pressing matters at hand. "Well why're you here?" Anzu asked boldly.

"Always with the questions," he muttered, walking closer to her. He stopped when he was right in front of her and suddenly Anzu felt fear crawling up the pit of her stomach. She took another step back until she hit the metal wall. It suddenly dawned upon her as to why her friends took such contingent safety measures; he was obviously not a man to be messed with. Anzu knew all too well what type of man he was. He was the type where if you saw him in a dark alley on even a good warm night, you would walk the opposite way, or avoid that route for the rest of your days.

Although it was a regrettable time to think about such things, Anzu promptly felt the need to smack herself in the head. _Why did I take shelter in a boat? _She thought inwardly, backing further into the wall.

"It's my ship."

"...That you stole," Anzu said before she could stop herself. As if he would ever go through the trouble of buying a ship.

"That I _loaned_," he hissed, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Loan? Some how I doubt that," she muttered coolly, averting his dead set gaze on her.

She felt her chin being grabbed roughly by his surprisingly warm yet calloused hands. A gasp left her lips as Bakura bore his steal brown eyes into her softer, lighter ones. "Repeat that- I dare you."

Her lips quivered in fear and Anzu knew he could sense it as well, but even so she felt an inexplicable urge to keep talking. "You stole it," she repeated slowly, and continued when she got no response, "I don't know why you're here, but I know you've killed people."

It at happened very fast- Anzu didn't know whether it was her loathing tone or blunt words, but she found herself lifted of the ground with one of Bakura's hand holding her neck in a vice like grip. Coughing, she gripped her hands over hers, watching him through teary eyes.

"I see word has no troubling getting around," he sneered, increasing his grip, "but if you go running a mouth like that around, don't expect a different fate from those who are dead."

He dropped her like dead weight and she steadied herself against the wall, clutching her neck and coughing vigorously. Anzu didn't need to be told twice. He had made his intentions clear and if he ever did want to do something to her, he would never hesitate. That thought alone was enough to send shivers up her spine. A silence unused, and Bakura merely watched as she struggled to regain her composure.

Giving her a final glance, Bakura turned on his heal to leave.

Anzu remembered that she had a voice and called out. "Wait- where are you going?"

He gave her an 'are-you-stupid' sort of glare and snorted uncharacteristically, "well, someone's got to steer the ship."

"Steer...you mean it's- it's moving?" Anzu was fully standing now, her previous fear had been replaced entirely by something else as she absorbed the facts.

"Yes, it's moving," he replied sardonically.

Anzu breathed in and out several times before responding. "So you're telling me we're out on the ocean...moving- on a ship?"

Bakura suppressed rolling his eyes and gave her a mundane stare, "yes." He stepped out from the little hatchet like door, before disappearing entirely. Anzu stood in spot and blinked slowly a couple of times before dashing after him through the door, pain still itching through her bones.

"Wait, why did you leave the port during the storm then?" She yelled after him.

He spared her a glance over his shoulder, "that's none of your concern."

"But it was raining-"

"It stopped after midnight," he intervened coolly.

Anzu sped up her pace, trying to keep up with his longer legs, "why didn't you wake me up when I fell asleep?" She pressed.

"I did not know there was a woman on the ship."

"But-"

"You should have thought twice before taking shelter on a ship," he cut in. Anzu bit her lips. Well, he did indeed have a point there, but did he have to say so snidely? It was making her feel stupid.

"It was the closest place," she whispered after a while.

"Bullshit," he muttered, "I'm sure if you walked another 500 meters there would another place to take cover."

Anzu furrowed her brows at his logical comeback, and slowly, she was beginning to feel like a complete idiot for sheltering on the boat. _Oh of all the place Anzu, out of all of them, you chose a boat...with him on it_, she mentally noted, staring at his back.

"Well it's not like I wanted to come here either. If I knew you were on it, I'd never come here, not even if I were to die," she spoke. Her voice was quiet, but the hostility in her voice was quite evident.

To her surprise, he gave a quiet chuckle and stopped walking. "Listen woman," he ridiculed, "I don't care if you die or not, but get in my way on this ship, and there'll be one less body to carry." His immaculate voice told Anzu that he wasn't kidding. If needed, he really would get rid of her one way or another.

She gave no response and simply looked down at the metal ground, lost deep in her thoughts. He was about to start moving again when her voice stopped him once more. "Take me back!"

"What?" He asked, thinking he had misheard her absurd request.

She nodded slowly and fiddled with the button on her coat, "take me back, I mean, we can't be that far from the port!"

He raised a brow at her and said nothing. The look on his face said otherwise.

"Okay, fine, we're far from the port, I get it," she muttered, "but I can't stay here-"

"Why not?"

"Because-"

"Whether you like it or not woman, you're stuck here with me," he interrupted smoothly, ignoring any pitiful reasons she had.

Anzu stared at him with something along the lines of shock and growing anger, "But who knows how long you're going to take! And I don't even know where you're going and-"

"I'll drop you off at the next island or port. As for where I'm going, that's none of your concern," Bakura growled, getting impatient.

A look of horror dawned her face, "what do you mean drop off?"

He gave her a cynical smile and started walking away. "You came here by your own will. I'm not your fucking baby-sitter friendship preacher."

She bit her lip in nervousness and rubbed her arms as though she were suddenly cold, "w-what do I do in the mean time?"

"I don't fucking know. Just don't get in my way." And with that, he stalked away, his footsteps slowly faded into the darkness of the halls.

This time, Anzu did not follow. She merely slumped her body against the wall and let of a deep sigh. It occurred to her that he referred to her as something she hadn't heard in a while- _friendship preacher. _She would have laughed, if the situation weren't so serious. She was currently stranded on a boat with the one person she wanted to avoid and it seemed, that if she didn't take great precautions now, he would probably get around to killing her too.

Holding in a groan, Anzu threw her head against the wall.

_What have I gotten myself into?_

* * *

**Author Note: **And that's the first chapter to a (probably), medium length story. There's much to be revealed, but for now, here's the beginning. Reviews would be greatly appreciated and I'd love to here your feedback! Thanks!


	2. Friction

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Yu-gi-oh or any of the characters associated with it.

Enjoy.

* * *

Anzu couldn't decide what was worse- the immense amount of pain in her back, or the lack or warmth on the ship. Rubbing her back to sooth the pain, she got off the cold metal tiles and adjusted her clothes. She clutched the muscles in her back and hissed. _That's sure to bruise, _she thought inwardly. Anzu couldn't tell how much time had passed since she had dozed off on the floor where she had originally sat to clear her head. The dark, dim lit halls of the ship must have gotten to her if she slept that easily on something so uncomfortable.

Rubbing her arms, she began walking, not entirely sure of where she was going. As Anzu walked, she took note of the lack of furniture and lighting on the ship, and the bare naked halls that looked as though they had been stripped of the carpet layer. As whole, the ship was entirely void of life aside from her and a particularly volatile white haired man who was currently nowhere to be found. As quiet as she was, her shoes clicked thunderously on the metal tiles.

_Why is it so dark in here, _she wondered, glancing around the pipe held ceilings that seemed to hold a depth of their own.

After what seemed to be the longest five minutes of her life, Anzu's eyes brightened at the sight of a little door up a head that had her quickening her pace. She turned the handle on the door and gave a good, hard push and the door jarred open. Immediately, her senses were overwhelmed with the smell of salt water and a light breeze that smelled like fresh residue from a storm.

For a second, Anzu almost forgot that she was stranded on a ship. Running up to the railing, she peaked over the side of the ship glancing around the area. Anzu guessed it was around mid-afternoon considering that the sun was beating right over her back. Squinting her eyes, she shaded her face with her hand as she tried to make out something in the horizon. Unfortunately there was nothing except for miles and miles of water with the occasional cloud and a stray bird of some sort. She slumped her shoulders in slight dejection and leaned further on the railing to enjoy the serene landscape.

"Well, at least the view is nice," she commented to no one.

"Can't guarantee it'll stay like that for long," a voice drawled back.

Anzu spun around, almost loosing her grip on the railing. Her cerulean blue eyes turned a shade darker and her eyebrows angled downward in a frown. Now that she had absorbed the reality of the situation, Anzu had no idea how to behave around someone she resented so much. It wasn't like she could casually lean over and say 'hello' could she? Not unless of course she wanted to be threatened or sniped at again. And despite the fact that he had indeed threatened her, somewhere inside her, she was thankful -and curious- that he didn't just throw her overboard when he had found her. Maybe he pitied her? She didn't know. What she did know however was that the enmity between them was enormous and his mannerisms and her hostile attitude were going to be the death of _her._

Ignoring his remark, she shifted away from him, "how long until we reach the port?"

Crossing his arms, he leaned back against the door she had not long ago emerged from, "soon."

Anzu spun around to face him again, "soon? What do you mean soon?"

Bakura raised a brow, "eager to leave now are we?"

Anzu found herself inching away again for unexplainable reasons. "I though that would be obvious," she mumbled in a hushed tone.

He gazed at her face, watching as it contorted into an array of expressions. He drew back from his position and walked towards her by the railing. Anzu's snapped out of her dazed state of mind at the sight of him approaching. She tried scrambling further away, but it was no use. He had longer legs and seemed to be more mobile than she ever was. Her back hit the rails again and he swept closer until he had one of his arms on each side of her timid frame, trapping her like a caged animal.

When he spoke, it sounded like a cold fluid had penetrated the warm, moist air around them. "Obvious- how so woman?"

"Obvious, yes." Anzu tried to look at anything but his face and her grip on the railings was becoming excessively tight as she tried to lean away from him. Of course, she could only lean back so far until she would fall off. "I don't like you."

She inwardly cringed at how that had sounded. Of all the thorough answers she could have given that was by far the most childish one. She shivered when she heard Bakura let out a bitter chuckle and carefully, she lifted her face upward to meet his. Hard brown eyes were observing her and Anzu, much to her chagrin, felt extremely exposed under his gaze. She glanced back to the ground as her cheeks were suffused with a pink color. _Oh god, what am I doing? _She moaned inwardly.

"Really now? You don't like me?"

"No...I don't."

It appeared that her colored cheeks were not lost on Bakura and he stared openly at the state of her face. When Anzu was finally able to collect enough nerves to look at him, the blush that was playing on her cheeks vanished. He was looking at her with a mix of amusement and boredom and it was then that Anzu realized he was just messing with her. She felt stupid and angry all at once, and if Bakura could sense it, he was doing a damn good job at hiding it.

"I think," she snapped, "that we need to set up some rules for the time being."

His gaze immediately darkened, "rules? What gave you that idea?"

She nodded slowly, "you stay on your side and I stay on mine," she explained.

As soon as she said that, Anzu felt a wave of regret roll through her. One look on Bakura's face made it clear that he did not like being told what to do, _especially _by someone such as herself- someone who supposedly hated him. And that sudden creeping coldness that she had felt the day before was back in the pit of her stomach. _Good job Anzu, now he's really ticked._

He drew closer if that was physically possible at that point, and Anzu tried her hardest to inch away from him, but half of her was already on the other side of the railing and it was extremely uncomfortable, not to mention a very awkward physical structure. "I think you need to remember who's ship your on and under what basis."

Anzu swallowed the frog in her throat and tilted her head to the side, avoiding his breath fanning over her face. "I'm surprised you have the nerve to set fucking rules around here considering that I could just push you over now." And to emphasize his point, he grabbed her shoulders and began pushing her slowly over the side.

Anzu, in a natural state of distress, grabbed the fabric of his black shirt, trying to reel herself back in. "Are you crazy?" She yelled, suddenly very aware that she could fall over any second. "Stop this!"

Bakura stared at her lazily, watching as she panicked in fear, "how about you ask nicely and perhaps I'll consider it."

If Anzu could reach, she would have grabbed the hair on his head and yanked it in vexation, but at the moment, all she could reach was his shirt. She tightened her fists around the black material. "Pull me back up," she whispered, glancing down at the dark waters below.

"Come again?"

She felt her brow twitch in fear and frustration all at once. What was she supposed to do? Beg for her life? "Bakura, I swear, if you don't pull me up I'll-"

"You'll what?" He intervened, looking bored.

Anzu bit her lip in discomfort and thought as to 'what she could do', when she realized she really couldn't do anything at the moment. Her grip on his shirt tightened further and she quietly mumbled something.

"What was that?"

She let out a loud sigh, before glaring at him. "I said could you please pull me back up?" He watched her with steady eyes, staring at her vulnerable form before grabbing her arms and pulling her up.

"Thank you," she muttered, rubbing her wrists in the spot he had grabbed as though his touch had burned her. Glaring at the back of his head, Anzu made note to be 10 meters away from him whenever she needed to talk to him.

"You wrinkled my shirt," he remarked, ignoring her previous words.

A strange silence followed. Anzu wasn't sure what to say. Was she supposed to care that she wrinkled his shirt? "Uhm- I...I can iron it for you if you want," she began meekly, and then wondered why in the name of anything she would suggest something so outrageously compassionate as ironing this insane mans shirt. "I mean, if you don't want me to-"

"Here."

Anzu would be lying if she said she was prepared for that. Bakura's shirt fell over her head and it then occurred to her that he was standing there very much shirtless and very bare chested. She was about to argue in protest, but seeing him in such an exposed state sent an unexpected trail of butterflies down her stomach. He wasn't exactly buff, but he had strong, lean muscles that ran the expanse of his back, arms, chest, and the rest of his tall frame; it seemed that Bakura was- surprisingly- well built. Blushing in sheer mortification that she was ogling him, she quickly spun the other way, eager to leave the half-naked mans company.

"Where are you going woman?" He called out.

Anzu closed her eyes, but didn't turn around, "I'm going to iron the uhm- this- this shirt."

She heard a soft chuckle behind her and froze, "and where, pray tell, is the iron?"

Oh right. She didn't know. Of course.

"I- I don't know."

"When you go below turn left and it's in the first door to the right. That's also your temporary room. And don't fucking complain about the standards of the room unless you want to sleep out here," he added with a growl.

She gave a vigorous nod of her head, "alright, I got it." And with that, Anzu hurried away in the other direction, relieved to be alone once again. Bakura scrutinized the woman as she hurried down the steps and disappeared through the doorway. He grunted in annoyance and started at the ocean horizon.

"Tch. Women."

* * *

**Author Note: **It's a short chapter, I know- but since they're alone together, there'll be plenty more opportunities to see them interact. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, reviews are always appreciated! Thank you for following and liking this story so far!


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